Gear for turning left and right

aaabbbb

I'm helping my sister learn to drive (as her sponsor) and she says that her instructor told her that it's OK to turn left/right in 3rd gear which has resulted in a few hairy turns!
As her being in 3rd instead of 2nd has meant her taking the turn too fast and not having enough control particularly on some of the tight entrances to housing estates.

I myself would almost always go into 2nd when turning left or right (perhaps with the exception of big junctions or roads) but I've obviously picked up a fair few bad habits over the years. I wanted to check if dropping down to 2nd is correct or if turning in 3rd is actually OK?

I don't want to be telling her to not listen to what her instructor says

colmufc

aaabbbb wrote: »

I'm helping my sister learn to drive (as her sponsor) and she says that her instructor told her that it's OK to turn left/right in 3rd gear which has resulted in a few hairy turns!
As her being in 3rd instead of 2nd has meant her taking the turn too fast and not having enough control particularly on some of the tight entrances to housing estates.

I myself would almost always go into 2nd when turning left or right (perhaps with the exception of big junctions or roads) but I've obviously picked up a fair few bad habits over the years. I wanted to check if dropping down to 2nd is correct or if turning in 3rd is actually OK?

I don't want to be telling her to not listen to what her instructor says

Always drop to second as a new driver especially before the test she will get a mark for every turn in 3rd and 4 will fail her , obviously it's fine to do so on more sweeping turns but 2nd until she at least passed the test

endacl

Speed dictates gear. She should get her speed correct and appropriate to the manoeuvre/conditions. The correct gear should be bloody obvious then.

CalamariFritti

I could never see myself making an actual 90 degree turn in other than 2nd really. I have an auto now but I'm sure it works out the same.

hasdanta

Depends on how tight the turn is. On tight turns I'd always be in second gear. If she's losing control on the turn then she definitely needs to reduce her speed and go to second gear.

J_R

endacl wrote: »

Speed dictates gear. She should get her speed correct and appropriate to the manoeuvre/conditions. The correct gear should be bloody obvious then.

+1
Are you sure she did not misunderstand ?.  Seems a very idiotic statement.
There are far too many variables to state that a corner should be taken in a certain gear.
And you should use your own basic common sense,  do not hesitate to override her instructor's teaching if they cause "hairy moments"

old_aussie

endacl wrote: »

Speed dictates gear. She should get her speed correct and appropriate to the manoeuvre/conditions. The correct gear should be bloody obvious then.

Good luck with that!

Give her a demo of using 2nd and 3rd gear at a similar speed in the same corner.

Henry Ford III

Whichever gear is best suited to the speed I'd have said.

homosapien91

Definitely 2nd gear for turning, that is what my driving instructor thought me and I would trust his teaching as I had passed my test first time after only 6 months of driving

Alanstrainor

homosapien91 wrote: »

Definitely 2nd gear for turning, that is what my driving instructor thought me and I would trust his teaching as I had passed my test first time after only 6 months of driving

And here lies part of the problem. There simply isn't a 100%, correct in all scenarios, answer to this broad question. Some left and right turns can be very sweeping and long allowing higher gears to be used. Whereas in towns and tighter turns second gear would be appropriate.

It's very common on this forum to have learners looking for black and white answers to topics such as this. And we can give answers that will be for the most part correct, but the reality is that they are rarely always correct. The best answer to this question is to use the appropriate gear for the situation at hand. Given what the OP has said, "taking the turn too fast" and "not having enough control" I think the best course of action her is to have her do more lessons and to cover these topics specifically. IMO the learner should have a good basis of driving with an instructor before driving with an accompanying driver.